The Police - LIVE

Consisting of one disc recorded from a Boston radio broadcast in 1979 and the other from a large concert hall in Atlanta in 1983, Live! demonstrates the evolution of the Police's sound while showing off their ability to perform onstage. Aside from the track listings (although several of the same tracks are found on both discs), there are notable differences between the two concerts. The production is the most obvious. The 1979 recording, sounding raw like a well-done bootleg, is mixed for a punk band, which the Police largely were at the time. The Atlanta recording is slick and professional, perfect for the world-famous pop stars they had become. The second major difference is the performances themselves. In the Boston concert, because they had less material to fill an entire show, the band extended the songs by improvising on themes and progressions (while at the same time frequently lead-footing the tempos). In contrast, the Atlanta show featured a denser mix. Three backup singers doubled the number of people onstage, while the songs were moody and atmospheric. Again the band expanded on its arrangements. You won't hear your favorite licks from many of these songs, but the fair exchange is getting to hear drummer Stewart Copeland's inspired improvised fills; Andy Summers's cautious, delicate guitar textures; and Sting's rasta chants. Aside from being a transcendent live album, this collection makes it very clear that the Police were so much more than just Sting and "two other guys." Quite the opposite is true. It testifies not only to the strength of the songwriting but, more important, to the band's musicianship. The Police were a perfect musical trinity, each member an indispensable and inseparable part of the whole.

ディスク：1
1. Next To You
2. So Lonely
3. Truth Hits Everybody
4. Walking On The Moon
5. Hole In My Life
6. Fall Out
7. Bring On The Night
8. Message In A Bottle
9. The Bed's Too Big Without You
10. Peanuts
11. Roxanne
12. Can't Stand Losing You
13. Landlord
14. Born In The 50's
15. Be My Girl/Sally
ディスク：2
1. Synchonicity
2. Synchonicity II
3. Walking In Your Footsteps
4. Message In A Bottle
5. O My God
6. De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da
7. Wrapped Around Your Finger
8. Tea In The Sahara
9. Spirits In The Material World
10. King Of Pain
11. Don't Stand So Close To Me
12. Every Breath You Take
13. Roxanne
14. Can't Stand Losing You
15. So Lonely

実はポリス初のオフィシャルなライブ盤。ただしディスク2の音源はレーザーディスク等で発売されていたシンクロニシティコンサートのものと思われるが、ファンには嬉しい二枚組。
個人的には初期のディスク1が好みなのだが、ディスク2も聞き込むとなかなか悪くない。

★★★★